YVONNE KENNEDY: High school 2020 graduations can still be memorable

Due to the pandemic, things are quiet at Yarmouth Consolidated Memorial High School and all other public schools in the province. - Tina Comeau

By YVONNE KENNEDY

This dreadful pandemic has changed our lives in so many ways. Perhaps our lives will never look the same again … or, at least, for a long time.

We have all given up so much, but none more than the 2020 graduates of our local high schools.

Graduating from high school is a big deal. It’s the culmination of all your school experiences, as well as a transition into the next stage of your life.

As a retired high school teacher, I have fond memories of the events leading up to graduation.

The young ladies start looking for that “just perfect” prom dress back in the fall. Next to selecting your bridal gown, this is the most important dress that they will ever buy. Mothers dream of seeing their daughters in their prom dress, hair appointments are made, makeup is organized to achieve that perfect look and excitement is at a fever pitch.

These beautiful dresses are hanging in closets all over Nova Scotia, with their owners wondering if they will ever see the light of day.

The graduation ceremony is usually an event when families get together to celebrate the graduate’s academic success. Proud grandmothers wear their best outfit to mark the occasion. Relatives come home from away to join in the celebrations and it turns into a family reunion.

Safe Grad celebrations are another important aspect of this rite of passage. Graduates can celebrate with their classmates and parents can go to sleep knowing that their children will arrive home safely.

This pandemic has changed all that. The graduates have missed out on those last months of high school when they are creating memories for a lifetime. To their credit, I have not heard any graduates complaining about the situation. They are mature enough to realize that it is just the way it is.

For teenagers, photo ops are an important part of graduation and prom. These pictures are framed and given to relatives as a badge of honour.

With this in mind, I would like to throw out an idea for the powers-to-be in the education world.

It would be wonderful if each school could have a large, professionally done sign erected on the school grounds as a unique backdrop for a photo op. There are many creative minds out there which could come up with a catchy slogan about graduating in a pandemic. The signs could be the same for every high school in Nova Scotia or personalized for each school.

The families could abide by social distancing rules and get their pictures taken at this truly remarkable time in our history.

Instead of looking at the glass half empty, look at it as half full. Take advantage of graduating in a pandemic to turn it into an event that will never be duplicated.

Throw in a specially designed T-shirt to depict the importance of graduating in 2020 ... in a worldwide pandemic.

For Education Minister Zack Churchill and the administrators of Nova Scotia’s high schools, this is an idea worth considering. Put a smile on the faces of the 2020 graduates.

Yvonne Kennedy lives in Homeville.

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